''Myrtillocactus geometrizans'' (bilberry cactus, whortleberry cactus or blue candle) is a species of

cactus A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Gree ...

in the genus '' Myrtillocactus'', native to central and northern

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

.Germplasm Resources Information Network
''Myrtillocactus geometrizans''

Description

''Myrtillocactus geometrizans'' is a large shrubby cactus growing to 4–5 m tall, with candelabra-like branching on mature plants. The individual stems are 6–10 cm diameter, with five (occasionally six) ribs, with

areole In botany, areoles are small light- to dark-colored bumps on cacti out of which grow clusters of spines. Areoles are important diagnostic features of cacti, and identify them as a family distinct from other succulent plants. Gordon Rowley - W ...

s spaced 1.5–3 cm apart. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are creamy white, 2–2.5 cm diameter. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

is an edible dark purple berry 1–2 cm diameter, superficially resembling ''

Vaccinium myrtillus ''Vaccinium myrtillus'' or European blueberry is a holarctic species of shrub with edible fruit of blue color, known by the common names bilberry, blaeberry, wimberry, and whortleberry. It is more precisely called common bilberry or blue whortle ...

'' (bilberry or whortleberry) fruit; both the scientific and English names derive from this resemblance.Huxley, A., ed. (1992). ''New RHS Dictionary of Gardening''. Macmillan .

Cultivation

It is a popular species in cultivation, where young plants commonly remain unbranched for many years. The fruit is edible, and sold for consumption in Mexico. The bilberry cactus is fast growing, and is often used as grafting stock because of this. With favourable conditions it can reach heights of up to 15 feet. The ''fukurokuryuzinboku(福禄竜神木)'' cultivar from Japan, commonly known as "titty cactus" or "breast cactus," has unusually plump ribs shaped like human

breasts The breast is one of two prominences located on the upper ventral region of a primate's torso. Both females and males develop breasts from the same embryological tissues. In females, it serves as the mammary gland, which produces and sec ...

. ''Fukurokuryuzinboku'', roughly translates to fortune (fuku), fief/happy (roku), dragon (ryu),

Shinto Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...

god/spirit (jin), tree (boku). It was named after

Fukurokuju In Japan, Fukurokuju (; from Japanese ''fuku'', "happiness"; ''roku'', "wealth"; and ''ju'', "longevity") is one of the Seven Lucky Gods in Japanese mythology. It has been theorized that he is a Japanese assimilation of the Chinese Three Sta ...

and Ryujin, two of the

Seven Lucky Gods In Japanese mythology, the Seven Lucky Gods or Seven Gods of Fortune (, shichifukujin in Japanese) are believed to grant good luck and are often represented in netsuke and in artworks. One of the seven (Jurōjin) is said to be based on a histor ...

in Japanese mythology.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q287064 geometrizans Cacti of Mexico Flora of Northwestern Mexico Flora of Northeastern Mexico Garden plants of North America Drought-tolerant plants